This is a roundup of news articles, reports, and other materials focusing on (in)security issues and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of Security in Context. The goal is to shed light on knowledge production on security-related issues of public interest from critical perspectives and from global south readings by highlighting media from four particular regions: Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle East, and developing Asia. Entries may include academic journal articles, think tank reports, non-governmental organizations releases, official documents or government-commissioned research, and regular news items. The material included covers SiC's key security issues: Climate Change, Security and International Relations, Migration and Displacement, Covid-19 and Capitalism, Technologies of Surveillance, Gender, Race, Ethnicity and Sexuality, Arms and the Military-industrial Complex, and Censorship.
You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each roundup to submissions@securityincontext.org.
Latin America and the Caribbean
UN agency warns growing crisis pushing higher number of people into hunger in Haiti
March 24, 2023
The World Food Program (WFP) released a warning that a growing crisis is pushing more people into hunger in Haiti with estimates that around half the population is struggling to access food.
UN: Fresh gang violence in Haiti leaves 187 dead in 11 days
March 21, 2023
As a result of clashes between gangs in Haiti at least 187 people have been killed, with 150 reported injured, all within the span of less than two weeks.
Earthquake kills 14 in Ecuador and 1 in Peru
March 20, 2023
15 deaths have been reported collectively between Peru and Ecuador after an earthquake struck northern Peru and southern Ecuador.
At Least 6 Die in Peru Clash With Shining Path
March 18, 2023
A Defense Ministry Unit in Peru reported at least 6 deaths following a clash between the defunct Shining Path rebel group and a military patrol in central Peru.
Peru lifts state of emergency in Lima
March 10, 2023
Peruvian Prime Minister Alberto Otárola announces the lifting of the state of emergency declared in Lima since December.
Africa
A vanishing coast and the search for solutions in Senegal
March 23, 2023
Senegal has been forced to battle with ever-rising sea levels off the coast of the nation, which has disturbed both natural habitats and Senegal’s fishing industry.
News: UN Rights Council says scale of violations in Ethiopia “must not be forgotten”
March 22, 2023
The UN’s Human Rights Council warned the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE) of the major violations committed in Ethiopia from November 2020 to November 2022, when a war broke out between the Federal Government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.
Climate change: farmers in Ghana can’t predict rainfall anymore, changing how they work
March 21, 2023
Due to climate change in the region, farmers in Ghana have had to rely more on their families and on hired workers instead of helping one another directly with their agricultural efforts.
ACSRT director commends Algeria’s pioneering role in counterterrorism
March 18, 2023
Director of the African Center for Studies and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT), Idriss Allali, praised Algeria for taking a central role in fighting terrorism and violent extremism across Africa.
Cyclone Freddy returns, over 100 killed in Malawi, Mozambique
March 14, 2023
A powerful cyclone, Cyclone Freddy, returned to southern Africa, killing more than 100 people when it passed by Malawi, Mozambique. The cyclone’s destructive path also resulted in 134 injured and 16 missing in the region.
Middle East
Israel strikes Syria’s Aleppo airport for second time in two weeks
March 22, 2023
Israel launches missile strikes at several unspecified targets in Aleppo, near the airport. These strikes are likely part of a larger offensive toward Iran, a country that has been largely aggressive towards the apartheid state.
Lebanese forces fire tear gas at protesters
March 22, 2023
Massive civil unrest in Lebanon due to extreme economic peril and political corruption has been met with a harsh response from Lebanese security forces. Protestors were hit with tear gas as they attempted to break through a fence belonging to a government building in downtown Beirut.
6.8 earthquake jolts Afghanistan
March 21, 2023
A massive earthquake hit Afghanistan, however, there have been no reports of casualties or structural damage so far.
Iraq 20 years on: researchers assess how US invasion shapes lives today – podcast
March 20, 2023
The effects of the illegal U.S. war in Iraq have been devastating in Iraq with an estimated 405,000 casualties and over 9 million displaced. The illegal occupation of Iraq lasted over 8 years.
March 15, 2023
Egypt looks to secure investments from Qatar and other gulf states to help the struggling Egyptian economy. This investment deal is one of many moves the Egyptian economy has made to help stimulate growth.
Developing Asia
Amended version of Nepal's transitional justice law fails to address key issues
March 24, 2023
The Enforced Disappearances Enquiry, Truth and Reconciliation Commission Act, commonly known as the transitional justice law, was passed in 2014 to establish a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate and prosecute human rights violations committed during the armed conflict in Nepal from 1996 to 2006. This month, a bill to amend the law was introduced in the House of Representatives in response to complaints from human rights activists that several provisions of the law enabled many perpetrators to escape justice; however, rights activists and organizations say that even the new bill retains many of the problematic provisions of the original law.
Rahul Gandhi, a critic of Modi, is expelled from India's Parliament
March 24, 2023
A day after being found guilty of defamation and given a two-year jail term for making a mockery of the prime minister's last name in an election speech, India's leading opposition figure and ardent opponent of Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi was ousted from the legislature on March 24.
UN accused of abetting Myanmar junta repatriation of Rohingya refugees
March 18, 2023
Publicly, UN officials have strongly condemned the Myanmar junta’s human rights abuses. However, leaked UN documents suggest the UN has secretly aided and abetted an initiative by the junta to repatriate Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh to Myanmar.
Human-elephant conflict in Odisha has claimed hundreds of human and elephant lives in past decade
March 14, 2023
Forest and Environment Minister Pradip Kumar Amat stated that 925 humans and 784 elephants have died in human-elephant conflicts in the past 10 years. Disease, accidents, electrocution, and poaching are the main reasons for the elephant deaths. The Wildlife Prevention Act calls for a seven-year prison sentence for killing elephants, but not a single poacher in Odisha has been prosecuted under this law in the past 10 years.
International firms involved in hydropower projects in Myanmar are complicit in human rights abuses
March 14, 2023
Leaked tax documents show that numerous European consulting firms have received millions of dollars from the Myanmar government for their involvement in the controversial Upper Yeywa Dam project, which activists have long perceived as a threat to the environment, local livelihoods, and human rights.
Micronesia's president expresses concerns over threat of China
March 10, 2023
In a scathing letter released earlier this month, Micronesia’s outgoing president David Panuelo harshly criticizes China, alleging that PRC officials have made direct threats to him and that China has sent ocean vessels into the FSM’s Exclusive Economic Zone. He also expresses concerns that China will invade Taiwan and expresses an interest in recognizing Taiwan.
Key Issues
This section includes the latest and most pressing news regarding SiC's key security issues.
N. Korea tests undersea drone in latest nuclear drills
March 24, 2023
North Korea has launched a test underwater drone that would be capable of launching nuclear attacks on nearby nations, such as South Korea.
US launches airstrikes in Syria after drone kills US worker
March 24, 2023
A suspected Iranian drone struck U.S. military contractors in Syria, killing one and wounding several. Shortly after the U.S. retaliated with precision airstrikes on Iranian facilities.
Russian War Crimes in Ukraine 20 Years After US Criminal Invasion of Iraq
March 23, 2023
The International Criminal Court has declared that Vladmir Putin has committed war crimes in Ukraine, engaging in ongoing illegal conflict and occupation. These allegations have been supported by the U.S. However, the recent 20 year anniversary of the illegal War in Iraq reminds us that all leaders of countries should be held accountable for illegal actions in war not just those who are not in the West.
IPS Looks Back on 20 Years of Endless War and Border Militarization
March 22, 2023
This article reflects on the legacy of three important historical moments, the opposition movement to the war in Iraq, the founding of the Department of Homeland Security, and beginning of the Iraq war. The Institute for Policy Studies assesses the significance of these events.
The Iraq war’s damage to public trust in experts has consequences right up to today
March 17, 2023
The Iraq War, its association with secretive government intelligence, and the failure of certain types of communications have resulted in lowered trust among Western citizens in global intelligence information.
